Israel’s military says 4 soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah drone attack on an army base
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel’s military says four soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah drone attack on an army base next to Binyamina city. The military statement came shortly after Israel’s national rescue service said the drone attack wounded 61 people. It’s the deadliest Hezbollah strike since Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon nearly two weeks ago. The military says the strike Sunday evening also severely injured seven soldiers. The Lebanon-based Hezbollah earlier claimed responsibility and called the attack retaliation for Israeli strikes on Beirut on Thursday that killed 22 people. Hezbollah and Israel have traded fired almost daily in the year since the war in Gaza began, and fighting has escalated.
Netanyahu mulls plan to empty northern Gaza of civilians and cut off aid to those left inside
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is examining a plan to seal off humanitarian aid to northern Gaza in an attempt to starve out Hamas militants. If implemented, the plan could trap without food or water hundreds of thousands of Palestinians unwilling or unable to leave their homes. Israel has issued many evacuation orders for the north throughout the yearlong war. The plan proposed to Netanyahu by a group of retired generals would escalate the pressure, giving Palestinians a week to leave the northern third of the Gaza Strip. Those who remain would be denied food, water, medicine and fuel. The chief architect of the plan says it is the only way to break Hamas in the north and pressure it to release Israeli hostages.
Volunteers bring solar power to Hurricane Helene’s disaster zone
BAKERSVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Nearly two weeks after Hurricane Helene downed power lines and washed out roads all over North Carolina’s mountains, the roar of gas-powered generators is both unpleasant and essential. About 23,500 of the 1.5 million customers who lost power in the region still lacked electricity on Sunday. Without it, they can’t keep medicines cold, pump well water, recharge their phones or apply for federal disaster aid. Crews from all over are helping Duke Energy make repairs, but it’s slow going in the dense mountain forests. One nonprofit that is helping is the Footprint Project, which is scaling up to supply solar-powered mobile infrastructure, from batteries and small generators to solar grids.
Trump tested the limits on using the military at home. If elected again, he plans to go further
WASHINGTON (AP) — During his first term as president, Donald Trump tested the limits of how he could use the military to achieve policy goals. If given a second term, the Republican and his allies are preparing to go much further. They’re reimagining the military as an all-powerful tool to use on U.S. soil. He’s pledged to recall thousands of troops from overseas and station them at the U.S. border with Mexico. He’s explored using troops for domestic policy priorities like deportations and confronting civil unrest. He’s talked of weeding out military officers who are ideologically opposed to him. The plans could amount to a dramatic shift in the role of the military in U.S. society.
From the pulpit, Harris calls out Trump for hurricane misinformation. Biden surveys Florida’s damage
GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Kamala Harris has used an appearance before a largely Black church audience in battleground North Carolina to call out Donald Trump for spreading misinformation about the federal government’s hurricane response. The Democratic presidential nominee didn’t speak Trump’s name on Sunday. But the former president is most prominent among those promoting false claims that the government isn’t helping Republican storm victims. Meantime, President Joe Biden was in the St. Petersburg area of Florida surveying damage from Hurricane Milton. Harris plans a rally later Sunday in North Carolina as she campaigns in a state that narrowly supported Trump in 2020.
Determination to rebuild follows Florida’s hurricanes with acceptance that storms will come again
VENICE, Fla. (AP) — The devastation of Hurricanes Helene and Milton is still being tallied as a swath of Florida comes to terms with damage from the unusual dual strike of storms in such close proximity. Some longtime Floridians have grown accustomed to the annual cycle of storms that can shatter and upend lives in a state known mostly for its balmy weather, sunshine and beaches. Some say it’s the price of living in paradise. President Joe Biden has arrived in Florida to tour the hurricane damage. Many residents spent much of Saturday searching for gas as a fuel shortage gripped the state.
Legislative majorities giving one party all the power are in play in several states
SHAWNEE, Kan. (AP) — A behind-the-scenes battle is underway between Democrats and Republicans for supermajority control of state legislatures across the country. More than 5,800 state legislative seats are up for election this year in 44 states. In most states, there is little doubt which party will prevail because of local voting patterns heavily favoring one party over another. But there is still plenty at stake. In 14 states, a swing of just three seats or fewer could determine whether one party holds a supermajority, meaning a margin so large it can enact laws without needing any support from the other party.
Prison operator under federal scrutiny spent millions settling Tennessee mistreatment claims
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The leading private prison company in the U.S. has spent more than $4.4 million to settle dozens of complaints alleging mistreatment at its Tennessee prisons and jails since 2016. More than $1.1 million of those payouts involved the state’s largest prison, the Trousdale Turner Correctional Center, which is now under federal investigation. Details of nearly 80 settlements provided to The Associated Press through public records requests allege brutal beatings, medical neglect and cruelty at CoreCivic’s four prisons and two jails in Tennessee. Surviving inmates or grieving families often fight for years to reach settlements with the company, which has a net worth of $1.44 billion.
In an engineering feat, mechanical SpaceX arms catch Starship rocket booster back at the launch pad
SpaceX has pulled off the boldest test flight yet of its enormous Starship rocket. Elon Musk’s company caught the returning booster back at the Texas launch pad with mechanical arms Sunday, shortly after liftoff. Towering almost 400 feet, the empty Starship blasted off from the southern tip of Texas. It arced over the Gulf of Mexico like the four Starships before it that ended up being destroyed. This latest demo successfully brought the first-stage booster back to land seven minutes after liftoff. The launch tower has monstrous metal arms, dubbed chopsticks, that caught the descending 232-foot booster. The spacecraft it launched splashed into the Indian Ocean, precisely as planned.
AP Top 25: Oregon, Penn State move behind No. 1 Texas. Army, Navy both ranked for 1st time since ’60
Oregon and Penn State each moved up a spot in The Associated Press college football poll following thrilling wins in high-profile games. AP Top 25 newcomers Navy and Army are in the rankings together for the first time since 1960. Texas strengthened its hold on No. 1 with its 31-point win over Oklahoma. The Longhorns received 56 of 62 first-place votes, four more than last week. Oregon’s 32-31 win over Ohio State moved the Ducks to No. 2 for their highest ranking since the 2014 season. Penn State rose to No. 3 with a 33-30 overtime win at Southern California.